44: Chapter 0044 Bloodlust

"Huff, huff! Huff, huff!"

"They really were targeted."

Gu Huan ran wildly for a while, but truly lacked the strength to keep up the chase. He hid behind a large rock to catch his breath.

To be honest, he didn't mean to blame Qian Siyue. Being targeted by three Foundation Establishment Cultivators at once, staying behind to wait would have been the most foolish course of action.

He secretly felt lucky.

He hadn't met up with them beforehand.

If his escape failed and he had to face such powerful enemies as Foundation Establishment Cultivators, his chances of winning would be slim.

"Qian Siyue can't be relied on. I can only rely on myself to get back; it's just a half-month journey."

This place was not suitable for a long stay.

Gu Huan remained vigilant, and after confirming no one was around, he immediately set off on his journey.

Near the Ghost Mist Market, it was easy to encounter greedy Cultivators. Getting entangled with them would lead to endless trouble.

Half a day later.

Gu Huan was about to cross a forest. He climbed to the top of the last tree and gazed into the distance.

There was a flat green plain, and further beyond that, a vast river whose opposite bank was out of sight, its waters rushing and magnificent.

"That is the Qingyuan River."

"Once across the Qingyuan River, I'll enter Qingyuan Mountain, the territory of Loose Cultivator Families. Passing through their land shouldn't be a problem; after all, we mind our own business."

Gu Huan climbed down from the tree.

He crossed the plain at his fastest speed.

Finally, at the Qingyuan River, he chose a stretch of water with a gentle current to cross. He couldn't see the other side; he estimated it was three li wide and a thousand feet deep.

After some time.

Gu Huan was exhausted. He was less than thirty zhang from the opposite bank and was about to make a final push to swim ashore when he suddenly heard an excited shout from the bank.

"Chen Yuanyu is here! She finally couldn't hold her breath and showed her head. Everyone, come over here!"

"Come look! The little lady of the Chen Family is about to suffocate in the water!"

"Hahaha!"

Loud laughter accompanied the sound of a commotion.

It sounded like about a dozen people were rushing over, mocking Gu Huan who was holding his breath in the water, not daring to come ashore.

Little lady?

Do I look that much like a woman?

Gu Huan could not have imagined how striking his appearance was when his body was wet.

One must know.

When Qin Yao originally chose him as a Cauldron, it was because she favored his looks.

At this moment, soaked in the water with his black hair flowing out and his delicate face showing a heroic air, it was only natural that the people on the bank couldn't distinguish his gender for a moment.

"Hand over the foundation establishment pill and we'll spare your wretched life. Otherwise, don't blame us beasts for not knowing how to cherish beauty. We'll have our way with you first, then snatch the foundation establishment pill!"

"Hahaha!"

Lewd laughter erupted everywhere, eyes flashing with wicked light.

The people on the bank were wearing uniform, neat clothing, looking like members of some Loose Cultivator Family. The leading man had a cultivation of only the tenth level of Qi Refining, and he stared at Gu Huan with a face full of contempt.

At the mention of the foundation establishment pill.

Gu Huan suddenly thought of Wang Sanshun and the Scarred Man.

The two of them had ambushed him on the road specifically to snatch a foundation establishment pill, just like the situation before him.

In an instant.

He was triggered.

Whoever wants to snatch his foundation establishment pill!

Shall be killed!

Gu Huan's killing intent surged. He took a demonic killing pill and swallowed it. As the Extreme Concealment Technique dissipated, his cultivation suddenly skyrocketed from the eleventh level of Qi Refining to the twelfth level, his blood energy surging violently.

"Snatch my foundation establishment pill!"

"Then I'll kill you all!"

Relying on his surging blood energy, Gu Huan leapt up from the water, treading across the river as if on level ground.

Before he even reached the shore, his Blood Arrow Technique shot out, instantly taking several lives. The Purple Flood Dragon and the Blood Flood Dragon were like Vicious Beasts crawling out of a hidden abyss, soaring onto the bank and instantly entangling and tearing at two people...

Screams.

The smell of blood.

It continuously stimulated the nerves of the remaining people.

They suddenly realized something was wrong; this wasn't how the situation was supposed to be.

The person they were hunting was named Chen Yuanyu, a member of the Chen Family from Qingyuan Mountain.

And they weren't trying to snatch Gu Huan's foundation establishment pill; it was someone else's!

"Senior, it's a misunderstanding!"

"This is a huge mis—"

The leading man realized something was wrong and wanted to explain.

However.

Gu Huan had completely seen red. The Mystic Blood Diamond shot out like a bullet, instantly piercing through the man's forehead. A spray of blood splattered behind him, completely staining the ground red.

"Help!"

"Senior, spare me!"

"Don't kill me, my father is a Foundation Establishment—"

Puff, puff, puff!

Boom, boom, boom!

Bloody light shot into the sky, and demonic flames rose.

In the blink of an eye, the riverbank was a river of blood, and all dozen or so people were dead.

After killing everyone, Gu Huan's demonic nature was high and he looked extremely terrifying, but he hadn't lost his reason. He quickly realized that this was a misunderstanding.

It was just that.

From the moment he killed the first person, there was no turning back.

He either had to harden his heart and kill everyone, or be hated by them and have their backing forces involved.

This matter was not his original intention.

He only wanted to pass through this land.

He had no desire to offend the people here.

"Still not coming out? Aren't you afraid of suffocating?"

Gu Huan looked back at the river, specifically at a certain spot. The cause of the misunderstanding, the answer, was hidden beneath the Qingyuan River—that woman named Chen Yuanyu.

Glub!

Glub!

Bubbles appeared on the river surface one after another.

Then, a pale-faced woman quickly surfaced, opening her sandalwood mouth to breathe deeply.

Looking at her face, she was only sixteen or seventeen. She was fair and pretty, but also radiated a frosty chill. She looked at Gu Huan with a face full of vigilance, and both were stunned for a moment.

"It's you?"

The woman recognized him.

They had met once while using the teleportation array.

Gu Huan also recognized the woman, who had a 'keep away' look and was extremely vigilant.

"Your name is Chen Yuanyu, and they wanted to snatch your foundation establishment pill?"

Hearing this.

Chen Yuanyu's delicate body trembled.

The Demonic Technique Gu Huan cultivated came from the Blood Spirit Sect, and the Disciples there were all insane thugs.

While she was submerged beneath the river, she originally wouldn't have been exposed, but it was precisely because she saw Gu Huan use the Blood Arrow Technique that she accidentally leaked a trace of her aura, allowing him to catch it.

"Reporting to Senior."

"This humble girl is indeed Chen Yuanyu. They are my enemies and indeed coveted the foundation establishment pill in my hand, but I lost it while in the water."

Gu Huan shook his head.

Naturally, he didn't believe her.

He nudged a dead body with his toe.

"Do you know him? What is his father's cultivation level?"

"His name is Lin Jinpeng, and his father is Lin Yunhu, a powerful Foundation Establishment Cultivator."

Gu Huan's face darkened.

He immediately cleaned up the battlefield.

After destroying the evidence, he plunged into Qingyuan Mountain without looking back. However, as soon as it got dark, he got lost.

...

Night fell.

In a forest ten li away from the murder site.

A faint firelight rose, dispersing the mist and illuminating Gu Huan's face.

Chen Yuanyu sat across from the campfire, stealing glances at him from time to time with an expression full of vigilance.

"Senior might not know."

"Qingyuan Mountain is covered in mist after nightfall. Unless one has a Divine Sense at the Foundation Establishment level or above, or a special Spirit Beast, one cannot wander around at will, as it's easy to lose one's way and fall into a dead end."

Gu Huan nodded.

The mist here was indeed impenetrable; even with the campfire lit, it could only illuminate half a zhang around them.

"When can we get out?"

"It will take about two days."

Traveling by day.

Resting by night.

"Are you sure the Lin Family's Foundation Establishment Cultivator won't enter Qingyuan Mountain under the cover of darkness?"

"Yes, the person he wants to get rid of most right now is my grandfather."

"Your grandfather?"

Chen Yuanyu nodded and said, "After the auction ended, Grandfather realized the Lin Family would move against the Chen Family. He had me secretly carry the foundation establishment pill back to the Family, while he and my father drew the enemy's fire from the front."

"Then why were you intercepted by the Lin Family and almost suffocated in the river?"

"I don't know, maybe it was a coincidence!"

Gu Huan didn't believe in coincidences.

But he didn't pry further.

"Senior, this humble girl boldly asks you to save the Chen Family." With a thud, Chen Yuanyu knelt respectfully before Gu Huan, her eyes reddened.

"Young Miss Chen thinks too highly of me. I don't have the ability to defeat a Foundation Establishment Cultivator."

"What if I am willing to exchange the foundation establishment pill for it?"

"Didn't you say you lost it?"

"I lied to Senior."

Gu Huan nodded.

He remained noncommittal.

"No need, I have a foundation establishment pill."

"Then what if I add myself? I wonder if you are willing?"

...